Yeast! Please Help Me Dr. Bob--Donation to Follow

Aug 8, 2007

I'd very much appreciate your help as my health care provider is extremely limited in HIV knowledge.

On Jan 1st I had unprotected sex (w/female). In early May I came down with a severe flu/mono like illness, strep like tonsils, but tested negative for strep, negative for mono. I was concerned about this because it occurred after two 15 week negative tests via Ora Quick and ELISA.

In June I was diagnosed with an oral yeast infection which freaked me out. I seem to be better but my right lymph node is still swollen and my tongue is coated. I also still have some white dots on my tonsils, but they did not concern an ENT specialist.

I have tested negative at 6, 15, 20, 24, and 27 weeks via ELISA.

1) Am I in the clear or is there a chance I may be infected?

2) What are the chances a six month ELISA could be wrong after repeated negative tests?

3) A curiosity: in your answers what is the difference between a definitive and a conclusive test?

Response from Dr. Frascino

Hi,

I'll respond to your three specific questions first:

1. Yes, from an HIV standpoint, you are completely "in the clear", which is another way of saying that your repeatedly negative ELISA tests out to 27 weeks are definitive and conclusive. HIV is not your problem. No way, no how.

2. Essentially nonexistent.

3. Absolutely nothing. I use them interchangeably and both together for emphasis.

Next, a comment. Why did an oral yeast infection freak you out? The vast, vast (second "vast" for additional emphasis) majority of oral yeast infections have absolutely nothing to do with HIV! Remember, a negative HIV test outside the window period trumps "symptoms" each and every time! That brings me to my next point. Your repeated testing is excessive and completely unwarranted. A single HIV-antibody test at the three-month mark is all that you needed. Tests taken prior to that are not considered definitive (there's that word again) and repeat testing after the three-month mark only corroborates what we knew to be conclusive with the three-month result.

There is no doubt you are having ongoing problems with anxiety and irrational HIV fears. I would strongly urge you to seek professional counseling. Take a copy of your question and my response to your first visit and show it to your therapist. It will help focus your treatment.

Thanks for your tax-deductible gift to The Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation (www.concertedeffort.org). It's warmly appreciated.

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